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COMPLETE HISTORY 



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EMBRACING 



A GREAT YARIETY OF INFORMATION AND COMPILED 

"WITH AN ESPECIAL REFERENCE TO MEET 

THE WANTS OF THE 

TRAYELLINa COMMUNITY: 

INTENDED AS A 

DESCRIPTIVE GUIDE : 

TOGETHER WITH A 

COMPLETE HISTORY AND PRESENT APPEARANCE 
OF TICONDEROGA. 



BY HENEY MARVIN^ 




NEW-YORK: 

SIBELLS & MAIGNE, PRINTERS, 
11 Spruce Street. 

18 5 3. 



i^. 




Entered according to Act of Congress in the year 1853. 
By W. E. & J. SIBKL.L., 

in the Clerk's office, of the District Court of the United 
States for the Southern District of New-York. 




ym ^ w> M 1^ ^ 



IN submitting tliis little volume to the considera- 
tion of an intellig-ent public, I trust I have made such 

a presentation as will meet the approbation of all 
those who indulgently peruse its pages. Tli^ design 

of this little work, is to present to the reader, and to 
convey as accurately as possible, a full and complete 
history of Lake George ; embracing every possible ob- 
ject of interest connected with its history, its islands, 
mountains, and legendary associations ; together with 
the graver details of history. In fact, every thing 
which I judged as likely to enhance the interest of its 
pages. 

Our knowledge of the past, is necessarily derived 
from the information of others ; and while I have been 
benefited by their researches, I deem it but an act of 
courtesy to acknowledge the obligation, which I be- 
lieve I have invariably done. I have not deemed it 
necessary to present sketches of the scenes I have at- 
tempted to describe — only prefacing the work with an 



IP 

iv. prp:face. 

excellent map— from the fact, they are too familiar to 
most travellers, and more particularly so, because art 
furnishes but a poor and inaccurate portraiture, where 
nature is so beautifully displayed. 

It would be unjust in me to conclude this simple 
introductory, without returning my sincere thanks 
to MosES Harris, Esq., patriarch of the Lake, to 
whose knowledge and experience for sixty years 
past, I am in the main indebted, for much of the ma- 
terials of this little volume. 

The best tribute of thanks that I can offer him, for 
he is now far " in the sear and yellow leaf," is the 
heartfelt wish, that his '' eve of life" may be as serene 
as the morn was bright and joyous. 

If these pages afford to the reader, but half the plea- 
sure I derived from hearing the story of the Lake, as 
told by my venerable informer, together with the ad- 
ditional pleasure of its compilation, it will have per- 
formed its pleasing office, and fully, and most satisfac- 
torily, requited the labors of the 

Author. 



-a 



e f^ 



CONTENTS 



CHAPTER I. 

4k Page. 
Introductory— Glenn's Falla— Description of the Falls— Bloody 
Pond— Battle of Lake George, Sept. 8, 175o— Anecdote of 
Hendrick, the Indian Sachem 7 

CHAPTER II. 
Hotels — General Remarks in regard thereto 22 

CHAPTER III. 
The Attractiveness of Lake George. . 25 

CHAPTER IV. 

Warren County— Its Boundaries— Caldwell— Lake George— His- 
tory — Its 'Frcuch and Indian Names 30 

CHAPTER V. 

Massacre at Fort William Henry- Montcalm's Defeat on St. 
Patrick's Day— Lieutenant Stark's Gallantry— Montcalm's 
successful Attack and Demolition of the Fort. August, 
1757 — Indian Ferocities — The Remains of the Fort — The 
Spirit of Vandalism — Fort George, its present appearance — 
Fort Gage. 35 

CHAPTER VI. 

The appearance of the Lake tempered by the Elements — The 
echos produced by the sound of the human voice and by 
the discharge of Musketry— The Amusements of Visitors- 
Its Sailing Advantages — Fishing — Interesting remains to be 
seen — Relics frequently found 44 



VI. CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER YII. 

Page 

Remarks on Travel — The Steamboat John Jay — Future growth 
of Lake George as a Summer Resort — A Description of the 
Islands and Mountains on the Lake, together with their 
Names and all the Historical and Legendary associations 
connected with them, and the trip to old •• Ty." 51 

CHAPTER Ylir. 

A Description of the Fortress of^iconderoga — Its History and 
present appearance — Abercrombie's Attack on Ticondero- 
ga, July 8, 1758— His Defeat — Anecdote of young Lord 
Howe 72 

CHAPTER IX. 

The causes which induced the commencement of Hostilities — 
The zeal of the Americans — An Explanation — Account of 
Colonel Ethan Allen's Capture of Ticonderoga 81 

CHAPTER X. 

A Description of the Kuius as now represented — Interesting 
localities described — Vandalism, its effects — Lcssing's Pic- 
torial Field Book of the Revolution 90 

CHAPTER XI. 
Evacuation of Ticonderoga by General St. Clair, July 6th, 1777. 94 

CHAPTER Xn. 
A word at Parting 100 



^ Q 



WmmCi 6F MSI SSOESS. 



CHAPTER FIRST. 

Introductory — Glenn's Falls — Description of 
THE Falls — Bloody Pond — Battle of Lake 
George, Sept. 8, 1755 — Anecdote of Hendrick, 
THE Indian Sachem. 










EAR Reader : — Consider me 
as the viewless spirit of a 
kind informer, and as such, 
allow me to travel incognito 
with voii, through the scenes 



^i:x our Guide Book may describe. Shall 



^0^ 



^ I make the salutation at '' Ty," or at 
w Moreau Station, the depot where, from 
V' the cars, in flaming capitals meets the 
eye, " Plank Road to Lake George !" The 
old stage coach, despite the elegancies of 
art, still maintains its primitive simplicity, 
and in this age of steam, and " fast contri- 
vances," is it not a pleasant change from the 



^- 



Q' 

8 HISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE. 

din and noise of cars, to the easy rolling of 
the swinging coach ? At the station, coaches 
from the two hotels, the United States, and 
the Lake House, are in readiness to convey 
passengers. The ride to the lake is exceed- 
ingly pleasant : formerly it was a very tire- 
some and fatiguing journey. The soil, com- 
posed of a loose sand, rendered it tedious 
and perplexing in the extreme, and company 
from Saratoga were a whole day in making 
the journey to the lake. Now we travel over 
a good plank road, which extends as far as 
Chester, and through a wild and almost 
unbroken region of country, which from 
its variety and picturesqueness of scenery, 
greatly relieves the tediousness of travel. 
But the progress of art, in conformity 
with the progressive spirit of the age, will 
soon send the rattling car on its impetu- 
ous way, and the iron horse, superceding 
every convenience of travel, will soon 
make our stage route " among the things 
that were." Five miles from the station 
is Glenn's Falls, situated upon the high, 
left bank of the Hudson, fifty-three miles I 
h ^ 3 



HISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE. 



from Albany, and seventeen from Saratoga. 
It received its name from Mr. Glenn, the 
first settler, and is now one of the most en- 
terprising villages in the State. The bridge 
we cross, is nearly 600 feet long, resting in 
the centre upon a marble island, and from 
its centre there is a fine view of the falls. 
These falls have a total descent of about 
seventy feet ; the water flows in one sheet 
over the brink of the precipice, 900 feet in 
length, and when in full flood, rushes in one 
mass down the cataract, producing to the 
beholder, a grand and imposing spectacle. 
In ordinary seasons, t!:e river is divided at 
the falls into three channels by rocks piled 
in wild confusion and beautifully carved and 
polished by the rushing waters. These falls 
have evidently receded from a position lower 
down the stream. The banks below are in 
some places seventy feet in perpendicular 
height, formed of rocks, and are beautifully 
stratified. Many fossils are imbedded in 
the rocks, among which, the trilobite is quite 
plentiful. Among the rocks below, are 
what is termed '' big snake," and the " In- 



^ 



10 HISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE. 

dian cave ;" the former is a petrifaction on 
the surface of a flat rock, representing the 
appearance of a huge serpent, the latter ex- 
tends through the small island, from one 
channel to the other, and is pointed out as 
the place where figured the young heroines 
of Cooper's " Last of the Mohicans." The 
natural music of the falls might have chimed 
in pleasing accordance with the pitch-pipe 
of David, and the " Isle of Wight," for here 
Uncas the last of the Mohicans advised, and 
Hawk Eye kept his vigils. 

Leaving the Falls, for there is nothing 
further to interest or amuse, our attention 
is not again particularly engaged, until we 
arrive within about two miles of the lake, 
where we may observe on the right hand 
side of the road, a small slimy pond, called 
" Bloody Pond." It is near 300 feet in di- 
ameter, presenting no attraction, but is me- 
morialized in history as being near the battle 
ground where Williams and his men were 
slain. It received its name from the num- 
ber of corpses thrown into it, giving to the 
water, as tradition avers, a bloody hue. 
^ — 9 



-a 

HISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE. 11 

The celebrated battle of Lake George, 
on September 8, 1755, was fought in the 
vicinity of " Bloody Fond." The battle was 
between the provincial troops under Major 
General, afterwards Sir William Johnson, 
aided by a body of Indians under Hendrick, 
the Mohawk chieftain, and a body of French 
Canadians and Indians, under Baron Dies- 
kau, a French nobleman ; the baron em- 
barked at Fort Frederick, at Crown Point, 
with 2000 men in batteaux, and landed at 
Skeensboro', near Whitehall. Having un- 
derstood that Johnson lay carelessly en- 
camped at the head of lake George, he de- 
termined to attack him. The following 
account of the conflict that ensued, is given 
by Dr. Dwight, Avho received much of his in- 
formation from eye witnesses of the action : 

On the night of Sunday, September 7, at 
12 o'clock, information was brought that the 
enemy had advanced four miles on the road 
from Fort Edward to Lake George, or half 
way between the village of Sandy Hill and 
Glenn's Falls. A council of war was held 
early in the morning, at which it was resolv- 

" 3 



12 HISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE. 

ed to send a party to meet them ; the num- 
ber of men determined upon at first was 
mentioned by the general to Hendrick, and 
his opinion was asked ; he replied, " If 
they are to fight they are too few, if they 
are to be killed they are too many.''' The 
number was accordingly increased. Gen- 
eral Johnson also proposed to divide them 
into three parties. Hendrick took three 
sticks and putting them together, said to 
him. " put these sticks together and you 
can't break them, take them one by one, and 
you will break them easily." The trick 
succeeded, and Hendrick's sticks saved the 
party and probably the whole army from 
destruction.* 

* A singular instance of artfulness is related of Hendrick which 
I extract from " Lossing's Pictorial Field Bonk of the Revolution.''^ 
Sir William Johnson obtained from Hendrick nearly one hundred 
thousand acres of choice land now lying in Herkimer county, north 
of the Mohawk in the following manner : The sachem being at the 
baronet's house, saw a richly embroidered coat and coTeted it. 
The next morning he said to Sir William. '• Brother, me dream last 
night ;" '-Indeed." answered Sir William, "what did my red bro- 
ther dream'"' '• Me dream that coat be mine." '-It is yours,-' 
said the shrewd ba-rouet. Not long afterward Sir William visited 
the sachem, and he too had a dream. '"Brother," he said, " I 
dreamed last night." '• What did my pale brother dream ?" asked 
Hendrick. " I dreamed that this tract of land was mine," describ- 



HISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE. 13 

The party detatched consisted of 1,200, 
and were commanded by Col. Ephraim 
Williams, a brave and skilful officer, greatly 
beloved by the soldiery, and highly respect- 
ed by the country at large. Lieut. Col. 
Whiting, of New Haven, was second in com- 
mand and brought up the rear. Col. Will- 
iams met the enemy at Eocky Brook, four 
miles from Lake George ; Dieskau had been 
informed of his approach by his scouts and 
arranged his men in the best possible order 
to receive them, extending his line on both 
sides of the road in the form of a half moon. 
Johnson did not begin to raise his breast- 
work until after Williams had marched, nor, 
as a manuscript account of this transaction 
now before me declares, until after the ren- 
counter between Williams and the enemy 
had begun. 

ing a square, bounded on the south by the Mohawk, on the east 
by Canada Creek, and north and west by objects equally well 
known. Ilendrick was astonished ; he saw the enormity of the 
request, but was not to be outdone in generosity. He sat thought- 
fully for a moment, and then said, '• Brother the land is yours, but 
you must not dream again." The title was confirmed by the Brit- 
ish government and the tract was called the Royal Grant. — Simms^ 
Scoharie County, p. 124. 



a 

14 HISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE. 

Williams marched his men directly into 
the hollow of the half-moon ; this Tvill be 
explained by the fact that the whole conn- 
try was a deep forest. When the enemy 
saw them completely within his power, he 
opened a fire of mnskctry on the front and 
on the flanks of the English at the same 
moment, and they fell in heaps, and at the 
head of them their gallant commander. 
Hendrick, also, was mortally wounded, 
fighting with invincible courage in the front 
of his people ; he was shot in the back, a 
fact which filled him with disdain and an- 
guish, as he thought he should be believed 
to have fled from the enemy. The truth 
was, the horns of the half-moon were so far 
advanced, that they in a great measure en- 
closed the van of the English and fired 
upon them from the rear. From this fire 
Hendrick received the wound which termi- 
nated his life. 

Upon the death of Col. Williams, Lieut. 
Col. Whiting succeeded to the command of 
the detachment. He was an ofiicer of great 
merit and gained much applause at the re- 



^ & 

I HISTORY OF LAKH GEORGE. 15 

duction of Louisbiirg ; and in consequence 
of his gallant conduct at that seige, had 
been made a captain in the regular British 
service. Whiting, seeing the danger of his 
men, immediately ordered a retreat, and 
conducted it so judiciously, that he saved 
the great body of them from destruction, 
in circumstances of extreme peril, in which 
their own confusion and alarm and the sit- 
uation of the ground threatened their exter- 
mination, no less than the superior numbers 
of the enemy. The noise of the first fire 
was heard at Lake George ; efforts began 
then to be made in earnest by the General 
for the defence of the camp, and a party of 
300 men were despatched under Lieut. Col. 
Cole, to support the retreating corps. A 
few stragglers, both English and Indians 
came into the camp and announced what had 
indeed been already sufficiently evident, 
from the approaching sound of the musketry, 
that the French army was superior in num- 
bers and strength to Col. Williams' corps, 
and was driving them towards the camp. 
Some time after, " the whole party that es- 
j ^ _ -& 



16 mSTORY OF LAKE GEORGE. 

caped," says Gen. Johnson, "came in in large 
bodies,'' a decisive proof of the skill and 
coolness with which Lieut. Col. Whiting 
conducted this retreat. These men also ar- 
ranged themselves in their proper places 
and took their share in the eao'ao-ement 
which followed. About half after 11 o'clock, 
the enemy appeared in sight, marching up 
the road in the best order, towards the cen- 
tre of the English. When they came to the 
bottom of an open valley directly in front 
of the elevation on which Fort George was 
afterwards built, and on which the centre of 
the English army was posted, Dieskau halt- 
ed his men about fifteen minutes at the dis- 
tance of little more than 150 yards from 
the breast-work. I have never seen a rea- 
son assigned for this measure, but I think 
I can assign one ; the Indians were sent out 
on the right flank and a part of the Cana- 
dians on the left, intending to come in upon 
the rear of the English, while the main body 
attacked them in front. The ground was 
remarkably favorable to this design, being 
swampy, thickly forested, and therefore per- 



e — ^ 

HISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE. 17 

fectly fitted to conceal the approach of these 
parties. The Indians, however, were soon 
discovered by Lieut. Col. Pomeroy, who im- 
mediately mentioned the fact to the Gen- 
eral; and observing to him, that these people 
were extremely afraid of cannon, requested 
that one or two pieces might be pointed 
against them. They were then near the 
e:round on which Fort William Henrv was 
afterward built. The General approved of 
the proposal. A shell was instantly thrown 
among them from a howitzer, and some 
field-pieces showered upon them a quantity 
of grape-shot. The Indians fled. The 
Baron, in the meantime, led up his main 
body to attack the centre. They began the 
engagement by firing regularly in platoons, 
but at so great a distance that they did very 
little execution. This circumstance was 
favorable to the English, and soon recover- 
ing from the panic into which they had been 
thrown by the preceding events of the day, 
they fought with great spirit and firmness. 
General Johnson, at the commencement 
of the battle, received a flesh wound in his 



o 

18 HISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE. 

thigh, and the ball lodged in it. He bled 
freely, but was able to walk away from the 
army to his tent. General Lyman then 
took the command and continued in it 
during the action. This gentleman, who 
seemed to have no passions, except those 
which are involved in the word humani- 
ty, immediately stationed himself in front 
of the breast- work ; and there, amid the 
thickest danger, issued his orders during 
five hours to every part of the army, as oc- 
casion demanded, with a serenity which 
many covet, and some boast, but very few 
acquire. The main body of the French 
kept their ground and preserved their order 
for a considerable time, but the artillery, 
under the command of Captain Eyre, a 
brave English officer, who performed his 
part with much skill and reputation, played 
upon them with such success, and the fire 
from the musketry was so warm and well 
directed, that their ranks were soon thinned 
and their efforts slackened sufficiently to 
show that they despaired of success in this 
quarter. They then made another effort 



I 



©- 



HISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE. 19 

against the right of the English, stationed 
between the road and the site of Fort 
William Henry, and composed of Ruggles' 
regiment, Williams', now commanded by 
Lieut. Col. Pomeroy, and Titcomb's. Here 
a warm fire was kept up on both sides 
about an hour ; but on the part of the 
enemy was unavailing. At 4 o'clock, the 
Eno-lish and the Indians who fought with 
them, leaped over their breast-work and 
charged the enemy. They fled, and were 
vigorously pursued for a short distance. 
A considerable number were slain in the 
pursuit. The wounded, and a very few 
others, were made prisoners ; among these 
was Dieskau. He was found by a soldier, 
resting on a stump, with hardly an attend- 
ant. As he was feeling for his watch, in 
order to give it to the soldier, the man sus- 
pecting that he was searching for a pistol, 
discharged the contents of his musket 
through his hips. He was carried into the 
camp in a blanket by eight men, with the 
greatest care and tenderness, but evidently 
in extreme distress. Hendrick had lived to 



r i 

20 HISTORY OF LAKC GEORGE. 

this day witli singular honor, and died 
fighting with a spirit not to be excelled. 
He was, at this time, from 60 to 65 years of 
age ; his head was covered with white 
locks, and what is uncommon among In- 
dians, he was corpulent. Immediately be- 
fore Colonel Williams began his march, he 
mounted a stage and harangued his people. 
He had a strong masculine voice, and it was 
thought, might be distinctly heard at the 
distance of half a mile : a fact which to my 
own view has diffused a new degree of 
probability over Homer's representations 
of the effects produced by the speeches and 
shouts of his heroes. Lieut. Col. Pomeroy, 
who was present and heard this effusion of 
Indian eloquence, told me that, although he 
did not understand a Avord of the language, 
yet such was the animation of Hendrick, 
the fire of his eye, the force of his gesture, 
the strength of his emphasis, the apparent 
propriety of the inflections of his voice, and 
the natural appearance of his whole man- 
ner, that himself was more deeply afected 
with this speech than with any other which 



HISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE. 



21 



he had ever heard. In the Pennsylvania 
Gazette, Sept. 25, 1755, he is styled " the 
famous Hendrick, a renowned Indian war- 
rior among the Mohawks ;" and it is said 
that his son being told that his father was 
killed, gave the usual Indian groan upon 
such occasions, and suddenly putting his 
hand on his left breast, swore that his 
father was still alive in that place, and that 
there stood his son. Baron Dieskau was 
conveyed from Albany to New- York, and 
from thence to England, where, soon after, 
he died. 







Q- 



(f^ 




CHAPTER SECOND. 



" Not placid Leman. where I've late been straying, 
Norgificd Pliny's wild tuniuUvous lake, 
Nor magiore round its inlands playing ; 
More beautious visions in the mind awake 
Than thou fair Uoricon I whose waters, bright 
And pure, and holy, now first greet my sight." 



Hotels — General Remarks ix regard thereto. 




WO hours ride brings us in 

view of the romantic waters 

of Lake George, and now 

that our journey is nearly 

ended, we must consult our 

whereabouts to dine ; for our ride is 

an encourager of dinner, or, if late 

in the day — 

'Timid Nature's Kweet restorer, balmy sleep !" 
invites — 

There are two good hotels at the Lake, 
" the United States" and the " Lake House." 



UISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE. 23 

The " Lake House," situated on the west 
side, in the village of Caldwell, is long 
established and favorably known to trav- 
ellers ; but the increase of visitors has in- 
duced the construction of the new hotel, 
the " United States," erected on the east 
side. Pleasantly situated on a high bluil, a 
projection from the main land, it is unques- 
tionably admitted as commanding tlie linest 
view of any point on Lake George. Dia- 
mond Island, Dome Island, Long Island and 
Northwest Bay, are conspicuously in view, 
together Avitli Tongue Mountain and otliers 
of equal celebrity. The house is located 
in a beautiful forest grove, is easy and ac- 
cessible of communication, built and furnish- 
ed in modern style, and with every possible 
I regard to taste and convenience. The piaz- 
j zas to this house are unsurpassed for ele- 
gance, and commend themselves to the lover 
of nature for the fine view to be obtained 
1 from them. Bells on the approved tele- 
I graphic plan communicate with every room 
I in the house — a desideratum much needed 
in our summer houses. Baths, conveniently 

ii ■ ^Q 



24 HISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE. 

arranged, are connected with the house. 
It is distinctly wished by the author, as 
honestly due to the travelling public, to 
state, that both houses have equal facilities 
of communication. Sensible travellers, rea- 
sonably imagine, that a good hotel desirous 
of popularity, must of necessity have good 
facilities of communication. Both of the 
houses at the Lake, are in this respect emi- 
nently favored. 

Travellers for the north are conveyed by 
the excellent steamer '^ John Jay," which 
leaves the head of the Lake every morning 
at T o'clock, while those southward bound, 
are taken over the same road which has 
brought us thus far. 




-a 






CHAPTER THIRD. 



'•' I care not Fortune what you do deny, 
You cannot rob me of free Nature's grace : 
You cannot shut the windows of the sky, 
Through which Aurora shews her brightening face ; 
You cannot bar my constant feet to trace 
The woods and lawns by liTing streams at eve — " 




The Attractiveness of Lake George. 

HE idea of sublimity, and 
the love of the beautiful, is 
so congenial to every hu- 
man breast, acting in such 
'^^^^^ perfect accordance with 
every ennobling faculty of a rational 
mind, that the true realization of the 
pleasure, has no appropriate channel 
for expression. The ingenuity of 
art. the mechanism of man's devices, may 
surprise and create astonishment, but the 
stupendous vastness, and immensity of na- 



26 HISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE. 

ture's works, produce far different, and 
more ennobling feelings. 

We enjoy the entertainment of the mind 
when it feasts on objects of natural beauty, 
and we gaze .with almost a reverential awe 
upon the scenes and localities which history 
has memorably described. To an imagina- 
tion active, and an observation quickened 
by the perceptive teachings of nature, 
what a store house of knowledge can the 
mind accumulate from the rich fields of 
historic truths. The love of the beautiful 
and the picturesque, is heightened and in- 
creased by the stirring events which may 
have formerly introduced the feeling, and 
the scenes where courage and bravery have 
proved their might, are powerful incentives 
to awaken a more endearing feeling. Our 
senses may be absorbed in the contempla- 
tion of nature's beauty with but perhaps 
no association to allure our thoughts, while 
some sterile and almost forbidden waste, 
thick with the association of past events, 
becomes deeply and romantically attractive. 
Thus it is, that Lake George with its thou- 



HISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE. I k 

sand -natural advantages, bears a ten fold 
more increasing attractiveness from its 
deep and interesting historical associations. 
In tlie Colonial wars, as well as in the 
war of our Revolution, no island jutting 
so fairy like from its caverned depths, but 
has been the theater of some military ex- 
ploit, while every mountain top has been 
made tlie seat of some fabulous and over- 
ruling deity. Is it not a glorious sight, and 
one calculated to awaken earnest and heart- 
felt emotions of pleasure as we gaze upon 
the silvery lake which spreads so beauti- 
fully its waters before us ? What a deep 
quiet rests on its mirrored bosom, and how 
securely float the tiny barks which from 
their very buoyancy " seem as if suspended 
in mid-air." 

'• Billows ! there's not a wave ! the waters spread 
One broad, unbroken mirror ; all around 
Is hushed to silence — silence so profound 
That a bird's carol, or an arrow sped 
Into the distance, would, like 'larum bell 
Jar the deep stillness and dissolve the spell." 

Park Benjamin. 

Is it possible that these peaceful waters 
now so securely slumbering, once cradled 

y ^ 



28 HISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE. 

upon their quiet bosom hostile armies, and 
that these hills, lifting so proudly their 
summits into the blue vault above us, as if 
to show 

" IIow earth may pierce to Heaven, yet leave vain man below," 

have echoed, and re-echoed, to the war- 
whoop of the revengeful savage ? 

Look now abroad — another race has filled 

These populous borders — wide the wood recedes, 

And towns shoot up and fertile plains are tilled ; 

The land is full of harvests and green meads ; 

Streams numberless, that many a fountain feeds, 

Shine, disembowered. and give to sun and breeze 

Their virgin waters ; the full region leads 

New colonies forth, that toward the western seas 

Spreads, like a rapid flame among the autumnal lenyes.— Bryant. 

The march of civilization and refinement 
has converted the stormy conflict of tumultu- 
ary war, into the gentler virtues of hus- 
bandry and peace, which, now in a measure, 
make these hill tops and valleys productive 
and fruitful. But nature has secured her 
fortresses on the mountain side, and the 
wild stalking deer seeks her covert in her 
mountain fastnesses as confidently as of yore. 
There is, and ever will be, the same poetic 
beauty and imagery which characterizes her 

OS 



HISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE. 29 

mountain scenery, for the progress of art is 
only stimulated by pecuniary gain, and here 
she can never reap a fair equivalent. Thus 
it is, that these wooded steeps will ever 
bear the impress of nature's originality, 
and will continue to wear and to preserve 
the drapery which the fairy charm of time 
so mystically weaves about them. 




e- 




CHAPTER FOURTH. 



Warren County — Its Boundaries — Caldweil — 
Lake George — History — Its French and Indian 
Names. 



ARREN County was taken 
iVom the northwest part of 
Washington county in 1813. 
It is principally situated on 
the west side of Lake 
George, centrally ; distant from 
New-York 240, and from Albanj 
75 rniles ; greatest length, north 
'^V^ and south, forty-four miles ; great- 
^ est breadth, east and west, forty 
miles ; with the exception of a small dis- 
trict on the southeast, the whole county is 
mountainous. The mountains, which are 
of primitive .formation, are covered with a 
heavy growth of trees, and contain, it is 
said, abundance of iron ore of good quality, 




HISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE. 31 

but have very small portions of arable soil. 
The valleys, which are narrow, contain 
some fertile alluvion, on secondary lime- 
stone. The country embraces about half 
of the Horicon or Lake George, the greater 
part of Schroon Lake, the whole of Brant 
Lake and many smaller ones. Caldwell, 
the shire town of Warren county, was 
organized in 1810, and named in honor of 
James Caldwell, Esq., a principal proprie- 
tor and benefactor. With all due deference, 
the village itself furnishes no attraction, j 
and has been subjected to no great improve- I 
ment for many years. It presents no par- ' 
ticular advantages for a future growth, and | 
with the exception of summer residences, 
will probably remain in its same quiescent 
and comfortable state. Lake George is in- 
deed a beautiful sheet of water. 

'• There is a magnet-like attraction in 
These waters to the imaginative power 
Tlaat links the viewless with the visible, 
And pictures things unseen." 

Its scenery is unsurpassed, and excelled 
by none in the world. Its waters empty 
northward into Lake Champlain at Ticon- 



32 HISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE. 

cleroga. Along its whole length of thirty- 
three miles, (and not thirty-six, as is gener- 
ally stated,) it is nmneroulsy interspersed 
"vvitli islands, most every one of which is 
clustered with historic associations. There 
are estimated 365 islands in the lake ; 
which number is somewhat exaggerated, 
but it must be borne in mind, that there are 
many projections from the main land which 
have no appearance of an island, and yet 
virtually are so. It has an average breadth 
of two miles ; four miles being its greatest 
width. It is 220 feet above Lake Cham- 
plain, and 300 above tide water. Its 
waters are very deep and clear ; the aver- 
age depth being 120 feet. The bed of the 
lake is of a yellowish sand, and the water 
is so transparent that a white object may be 
seen at the depth of near forty feet. 
Schroon and Brant lakes are beautiful sheets 
of water, and abound with fish similar to 
Lake George. The scenery in the vicinity 
of the lake is of the most wild and pictur- 
esque character. A range of mountains 
rises to the westward, the highest of which 



HISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE. 33 

is Prospect or Rattlesnake Hill, having an 
elevation of 1500 feet ; to the eastward 
rises a range of mountains, a continuous 
chain, and designated as the French Moun- 
tains. From the summit of 'Rattlesnake 
Hill a fine view of the lake can be obtained, 
but the fear inspired from its " crawling 
denizens," who make bold to visit near the 
abodes of men, intimidates most travellers 
from toiling its w^eary ascent. The view 
froni French Mcfuntain is immensely grand, 
and there is no fear of the senses being 
chilled by an informal visitation from his 
most " Gracious Snakeship," for it is a 
sino-ular fact, that the French Mountains 
are entirely free from them. The Indians 
named the lake on account of the purity of 
its waters, Horicon, or Silver Water ; they 
also called it Canderi-oit, or the tail of 
the Lake, on account of its connection with 
Lake Champlain. It was visited by Samuel 
Champlain in 1609, and some suppose he 
gave his name to the lake instead of the 
one which now bears it. It also received 
the name of Sacrament by the French, who 



© 



34 



HISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE. 



frequently visited the lake, its pure waters 
suggesting the idea. The remains of Fort 
George and Fort William Henry, at the 
head of the lake, are well worthy of a visit. 
Fort William Henry stood directly on the 
lake shore, on the west side of a pure moun- 
tain stream called West Creek, the main 
inlet of Lake George. 




-9 






CHAPTER FIFTH. 

Rebellious subjects, enemies to peace. 

Profaners of this neighbor-stained steel. 

Will they not hear ?— what ho 1 you men. you beasts — 

That quench the fire of your pernicious rage, 

With purple fountains issuing from your veins 

On pain of torture, from those bloody hands 

Throw your mistenipered weapons to the ground. 

Borneo and Juliet. 

Massacre at Fort William Henry — Montcalm's 
Defeat on St. Patrick's Day — Lieut. Stark's 
Gallantry — Montcalm's successful Attack and 
Demolition of the Fort, August, 1757 — Indi- 
an Ferocities— The Remains of the Fort — The 
Spirit of Vandalism — Fort George — Its pre- 
sent appearance — Fort Gage. 

'• Truth, weeping, tells the mournful tale." 

N the 9tli of August, in the year 
1757, the head of Lake George was 
the theatre of a terrible massacre. 
Lord Loudon, Governor of Yir- 
ginia, a man of indecision and procrastinate 
in all movements, was appointed Command- 




-Q 



-a 



36 HISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE. 

er-in-Cliief of all the British forces in 
America. Opposed to him was Montcalm 
the active and successful commander, the 
beloved of the French army, who attempted 
to capture Fort William Henry, March 
16th, 1757 ; to consummate his design he 
passed up Lake George on Saint Patrick's 
eve, and landed behind Long Point, four 
miles from the fort, and on the next day 
appeared suddenly before it. He was gal- 
lantly repulsed by the little garrison under 
the command of Lieut. Stark, who, by his 
ingenuity and the authority he exercised 
over his men, saved them from total destruc- 
tion. Most of his men were Irishmen, and 
as such, they had calculated largely on cele- 
brating Saint Patrick's day, but Lieut. 
Stark apprehending an attack from some 
quarter, particularly from Montcalm, exer- 
cised the precaution to check the indulgen- 
ces incident to the day, by ordering the 
sutler not to issue any spirituous liquors at 
the expected time, without a written order. 
When applied to, he pleaded a lame wrist, 
which incapacitated him from supplying 



Q 



) o 

HISTOllV OF LAKE GEORGE. 37 

tlieir wants. The Irishmen in the regular 
resriments o'ot drunk as usual, and hence 
Montcalm's desire that they might be simi- 
larly aifected ; sorely discomforted, but by 
no means disheartened, he returned to 
Ticonderoga and mustered all his forces, 
amounting in the aggregate to 9,000 men, 
with the intention of speedily carrying out 
his design of subjugating Fort William 
Henry. At the time of Montcalm's attack 
upon Fort William Henry on St. Patrick's 
day, Webb was at Fort Edward with 4000 
men. He visited Fort William Henry 
under an escort of 200 men, commanded by 
Putnam, and while there, sent that officer 
with eiGrhteen men down the lake on a re- 
connoitering expedition. The enemy were 
discovered to be more numerous than was 
supposed. Putnam begged General AVebb 
to allow him to attack them with full 
numbers, but his importunities were stoically 
rejected, and he was only allowed another 
reconnoissance, and from which he barely 
escaped, but finally reached the fort in 
safety. General Webb, on this occasion, 



.^, 



38 HISTORY OF LAKE GEOKGE. 



acted in the most pusillanimous and coward- 
ly manner ; he caused Putnam to administer 
an oath of secrecy to his rangers respecting 
the proximity of the enemy. Putnam, in- 
dignant at this proposition of Webb's, as 
so repugnant to his ideas of soldierly 
character and discipline, remonstrated 
courteously by saying — " I hope your ex- 
cellency does not intend to neglect so fair 
an opportunity of giving battle should the 
enemy presume to land ?" Webb's cow- 
ardly reply — " " What do you think we 
should do here ?" greatly exasperated the 
noble feelings of the heroic Major. By au- 
thority of General Webb, who was com- 
mander of all the forces at TiconderoQ:a, 
Colonel Munroe was ordered with a regi- 
ment to re-inforce and to take command of 
the garrison at Lake George. Montcalm, 
conscious of success, and flushed with hopes 
of victory, embarked his troops at the foot 
of the lake, consisting of more than 9,000 
men, an accession to his former numbers of 
many Indians, who were induced to join 
with the hope of plunder, together with a 
w— — ■ — C^ 



HISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE. 



powerful train of artillery, and landed at 
the liead of the lake. He instantly com- 
menced operations for the demolition of 
the fort, having a force of less than 3,000 
men to contend with. He offered every 
inducement to Munroe for the immediate 
surrender of the fort, urging that he was 
not desirous to proceed in the enforcemxCnt 
of his designs, and doubtless actuated by 
the most humane of motives, he urged his 
request. Munroe, deaf to the importuni- 
ties of his more powerful rival, was confi- 
dently expecting reinforcements from Gen. 
Webb, and strenuously refused compliance. 
The storming was commenced by the 
French, and the seige lasted six consecutive 
days, without much slaughter on either 
side. 

The following account of the capture of 
the fort, which is so minutely detailed, is 
extracted from Professor Silliman's Tour : 

" The Marquis de Montcalm, after three 
ineffectual attempts upon Fort William 
Henry, made great efforts to beseige it in 
form, and in August, 1757, having landed 

Q — — 3 



f% 



40 HISTORY or LAKE GEORGE, 

ten thousand men near the fort, summoned 
it to surrender. He had a powerful train 
of artillery, and although the fort and 
works were garrisoned by three thousand 
men, and were most gallantly defended by 
the commander, Col. Monroe, it was obliged 
to capitulate ; but the most honorable terms 
were granted to Col. Monroe in considera- 
tion of his gallantry. The bursting of the 
great guns, the want of amunition, and 
above all, the failure of General Webb to 
succor the fort, although he lay idle at 
Fort Edward with 4,000 men, w^ere the 
causes of this catastrophe. The capitula- 
tion was, however, most shamefully broken ; 
the Indians attached to Montcalm's army, 
wdiile the troops were marching out of the 
gate of the fort, dragged the men from the 
ranks, particularly the Indians in the 
English service, and butchered them in cold 
blood ; they plundered all without distinc- 
tion, and murdered women and little chil- 
dren with circumstances of the most aggra- 
vated barbarity. The massacre continued 
all along the road, through the defile of 
Q _ ■ , 



HISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE. 41 

the mountains, and for many miles the mis- 
erable prisoners, especially those in the 
rear, were tomahawked and hewn down in 
cold blood ; it might well be called the 
bloody defile, for it was the same ground 
that was the scene of the battles only two 
years before, in 1755. It is said that 
efforts were made by the French to restrain 
the barbarians, but they were not restrained 
and the miserable remnant of the garrison 
with difficulty reached Fort Edward pursued 
by the Indians, although escorted by a body 
of French troops. I passed over the whole 
of the ground upon which this tragedy was 
acted, and the oldest men of the county still 
remember this deed of guilt and infamy." 

Fort William Henry was levelled by 
Montcalm and has never been re-built. 
Fort George was built as a substitute for 
it, on a more commanding site, and although 
often mentioned in the history of subse- 
quent wars, was not, I believe, the scene of 
any very memorable event. 

There is nothing now remaining of Fort 
William Henry except a few mounds and 



©- 



42 HISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE. 

shallow ditches, for time has weaved his 
spell over the rude masonry of art. The 
general appearance of the grounds scarcely 
denote that they have ever been appropri- 
ated as the theatre of war, for no vestige 
now remains, save a time-worn well which 
supplied the garrison, to indicate the ap- 
pearance of an entrenched army. South- 
west of the fort, at the base of Rattlesnake 
Hill, is a clearing called French Field. 
Here it was that Dieskau halted and dis- 
posed his men for action. There was a 
rough stone upon which was inscribed in 
uncouth characters, Jacques Cortois, 1T55. 
The spirit of Vandalism destroys every 
association connected with the past, 

" Yet even these bones from insult to protect, 
Some frail memorial still erected nigh. 
With uncouth rhymes, ami shapeless sculpture decked, 
Implores the passing tribute of a sigh." 

seems to have no effect in remedying this 
gross and unpardonable evil, for not many 
years ago the stone was broken and part of 
it secretly carried away, and now, probably, 
adds to the collection of some carefully 
selected cabinet. Fort George is about 
©_ Q 



HISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE. 43 

midway between the east and west shore, 
and was erected upon a sloping eminence 
about a quarter of a mile from Fort Wil- 
liam Henry, and probably one-eighth from 
the lake shore. It was well designed as a 
fortress, the material for its construction 
were close at hand, composed of a dark lime- 
stone or black marble which covers the sur- 
face or protrudes abruptly aboA^e it. The 
east wall is about twenty feet high, and still 
preserves its original appearance. Passen- 
gers for the United States Hotel pass direct- 
ly by this fort, and are in close proximity 
with Fort William Henry. The fortress evi- 
dently was a safe and secure one, though it 
has not been the scene of any very memorable 
event. Southwest of Fort George was a 
small fortification, hardly a vestige of which 
now remains, called Fort Gage. It was 
named in honor of General Gage, who suc- 
ceeded Lord Amherst as commander of the 
forces in America in 1760. 



€> fi 




CHAPTER SIXTH. 



What envious streaks 

Do lace the soyering clouds in yondor east ; 
Night's candles are burnt out and jocund day 
Stands tip-toe on themistj- mountain tops. 

Romeo and Juliet. 



The Appearance of the Lake tempered by the 

ELEMENTS ThE ECHOS PRODUCED BY THE SOUND OF 

THE HUAIAN VOICE, AND BY THE DISCHARGE OF 

Musketry — The Amusements of Visitors — Its 
Sailing Advantages — Fishikg — Interesting re- 
mains to be seen — Relics frequently found. 



:hat more enrapturing sight can be 
unfolded to the gaze of the 
admiring observer than nature 
clothed in the panoply of her richest mag- 
nificence. When first Aurora peeps with 
smiles and blushes to welcome in the day, 

^ ; 




HISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE. 45 

what liymiis of thanksgiving in their mute 
eloquence, breathe from all animate and in- 
animate nature. It is a task worthy of en- 
gaging the attention of the most frequent 
participant to bask in the first radiant 
beams of the rising sun, and particularly 
so when they fall in golden light upon 
the wave, kissed by the cool breath of the 
mountain breeze. A sunrise on Lake 
George ! There may be scenes of more 
startling and thrilling interest, there may 
be greater evidences of nature's vastness 
and immensity, there may be chords of feel- 
ing which more passionately touch the 
human breast, but none which exert a more 
chastening and subduing feeling than the 
sun's first glimmer through the purpling 
east. There is such a quiet beauty which 
associates so happily with the scene, such a 
congeniality of feeling in the still com- 
munings of nature, that in the contempla- 
tion jou lose your real existence, and live 
in the bright creation of an ideal world. 
But above all, are the senses enchained 
when the pealing thunder shakes the firm 



^- 



r f 

4G HISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE. 

\ 

masonry of Heaven, and all the embattled 
hosts war in the elemental strife. When 
the skies wear the somber hue of storm and 
darkness, and the black ominous clouds, so 
hastily driven, rest angrily upon some 
mountain's brow, and the sun's faint glim- 
mer through some half discomfited cloud, as 
if interposing to still the tumult of the ap- 
proaching storm, the leaping lightning 
gamboling in pride from crag to crag, now 
levelling some mighty oak, leviathan of the 
sod, or darting harmlessly its forked way, 
when peal on peal afar, the roaring thun- 
der tracks his headlong march, and the 
hoarse winds pipes its loud breath to the 
liberal air, crisping the pure lake into a 
sheeted foam, whose mist conceals all but 
its turbid bosom, who that has a heart 
awed by the influences of nature, can resist 
the magic potency of the awful scene ? 
I We gaze on in mute admiration, feeling, 
j but giving no audible expression. Not 
I alone are there scenes to awe and inspire 
j the noblest faculties, but equally so to 
i amuse and interest the curious. The echo 
y 



HISTORY OF LAKE GKOKGE. 47 

produced by tlie sound of the human voice 
in many parts of the lake, is singularly 
beautiful. On the east shore, about three- 
quarters of a mile from the public house, 
there is a spot 

'• Which, in my opinion, 
Gives the best echo that you eyer heard ! 
So plain in the distinction of our woids, 
That many have supposed it a spirit 
That answers."' 

Three echos can be plainly heard at the call 
of a name, and with so much distinctness 
and true inflection of the voice, that one 
must indeed " suppose it a spirit'^ that 
answers. The report of musketry is equally 
pleasing, and on a still night, the boom of 
a cannon reverberates grandly among the 
lofty mountains which environ this lovely 
lake. Company highly amuse themselves 
on a hne moonlight night in all manner of 
aquatic amusements, and the dipping oars 
as the accompaniment to music, produces 
the most pleasing imaginable effect. This 
lake possesses advantages over many other j 
inland bodies of water for pleasure sailing. 
The winds are generally favorable for this j 



e- 



48 HISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE. 

purpose ; tliose from the north having a full 
sweep of some twelve miles to the head of 
the lake, while from the south, a current 
of air passes through a wide gorge of the 
French Mountains, causing a steady and re- 
liable breeze which ensures comparative 
safety to those who indulge in this health- 
ful amusement. There is some good fishing 
at the head of the lake, but like other 
sports, distance and the din of preparation 
enhances the pleasure of the journey and 
creates a different degree of satisfaction 
when attended with some hardship and the 
necessity of homely fare. The fish caught 
at the head of the lake are mostly small, 
but none the less acceptable for the table. 
Trout, bass and perch are very plentiful ; 
the former being of large size and of most 
delicious flavor. Expert anglers can here 
enjoy their favorite pastime to its full and 
unlimited extent. I shall point out the 
best fishing localities as we proceed on our 
journey through the lake. Near the south 
shore of the lake, a few rods east of Fort 
William Henry, in about fifteen feet of 



-Q 



© @ 

niSTOKY OF LAKE GEORGE. 49 

water, may be discovered wlien the water is 
not agitated, part of the hulk of a vessel, 
probably used by Montcalm for the convey- 
ance of his forces through the lake at the 
time of his attack upon Fort William 
Henry. Efforts were made some years 
ago by two of the village residents to raise 
it, but it was so decomposed by the action 
of the water, that their efforts were only 
partially rewarded. Numerous relics of 
Indian devices, such as knives and arrow 
heads, also gun barrels, spikes, cannon and 
musket balls, have been found in great 
profusion for many years past, and with 
the further disturbance of the soil about 
the locality of the fort many will yet be 
discovered and brought to light from their 
long entombment. On the west shore, a 
few rods north of the village, is an old 
hulk which travellers will naturally make 
enquiries about. It was formerly the steam- 
boat " William Caldwell," which used to 
traverse these waters, and having fulfilled 
her expected requirements, she was stripped 
I of all her valuable necessaries and was left 



-f5 



50 



HISTORY OK LAKE GEORGR. 



lying upon the strand, where she has been 
subjected to the action of the elements for 
the past three years. 






'^ 



i^ 




CIIAPTEE SEVENTH. 



" The south wind was like a genllc friend, 
Parting the hair so softly on my hro^. 
It hiid come o'er the gardens, and the flowers 
That kissed it were betrayed ; for as it parted 
With its invisible fingers my loose liair, 
I knew it had been trifling with the rose 
And stooping to the violet There is joy 
For all God's creatures in it." — Willis. 



Eemarks on Travel — The Steamboat John Jay — 
Future growth of Lake George as a summer 
resort — A Description of the Islands and 
Mountains on the Lake, together with their 
names and all the Historical and Legendary 
associations connected with them, and the 
trip to old ''Ty." 

EPRESHED and invigorated by the 
harmonizing influences at work 
around us, exerting an equally 
beneficial influence upon the inva- 
lid as well as the tourist for pleasure, we 
must, to prosecute our journey, secure pas- 




-y) 



■ & 

. 52 HISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE. 

sage on board the excellent steamer 
" John Jay," which leaves her moorings 
every morning (Sundays excepted,) at 7 
o'clock. How beautiful and fine the day 
appears, and how beautifully it harmonizes 
with the sentiments in the lines quoted at 
the heading of our chapter. 

The travel through the lake has increased 
immeasurably beyond the accommodations 
heretofore afforded, and from the great 
number of visitors who make their annual 
pilgrimage thither, a number of good 
commodious houses might be profitably 
erected. It is a true assertion, that Lake 
George will, ere long, vie with Saratoga, 
its sister rival, in fashion and number of 
visitors. Contiguous as are the two places, 
they must eventually coalesce and form the 
chain of the great northern projected sum- 
mer travel, as Avell as become the fashiona- 
ble and truly healthful resort of city resi- 
dents. A number of good houses are 
scattered along the borders of the lake, 
among which are Low's Trout Pavilion, six 
miles from the head. Gale's at Bolton, ten 
Q < 



HISTORY OF LAKE GEORGK. 53 

miles, and Garfield's at Hague, twenty-five 
miles ; the latter being a capital resort for 
parties of pleasure, justly noted for its good 
fishing and hunting. But to our journey : 
What an excellent steamer is destined to 
convey us through the lake, and under the 
excellent captaincy of Hozea B. Farr, we 
may indeed promise ourselves a delightful 
journey. The " John Jay" is the property 
of John J. Harris, Esq., one of the ener- 
getic men of the day, and a resident of War- 
ren county. It was built under his own 
immediate supervision, and is in every re- 
spect a fine, staunch vessel. Too much 
praise cannot be awarded to its liberal and 
indefatigable proprietor for tlie energy and 
spirit first displayed in its construction, and 
under such a train of discouragements, that 
none but the most foresighted could have 
possibly conceived its future success. The 
boat is managed with much liberality, 
evincing a just appreciation of the wants of 
the travelling community, with a due regard 
to speed, and to the higher importance, of 
confident safety to the traveller. 



9 



54 HISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE. 

Having commenced our journey, the first 
island we pass is Tea Island, near the west 
shore one mile from the head of the lake. 
It is a beautiful and romantic isle, with a 
harbor resembling in miniature, the counter- 
part of Havana. There is a rustic summer 
house to be seen upon it, and it is certainly 
one of the most delightful spots located on 
the lake. It is much frequented by parties 
of pleasure, as it is within a convenient dis- 
tance of both houses. On the east shore, 
one and a half miles further to the north, is 
Plum Point. Further to the east, and di- 
rectly around this point is Dunham's Bay, 
one and a half miles in length. In the centre 
of the lake, three miles from the head, is Dia- 
mond Island ; lying directly in front of 
Dunham's Bay. It received its name from 
the number and beauty of the quartz crys- 
tals which are found upon it, closely re- 
sembling the diamond in their brilliancy 
and shape. This little island is quite no- 
table in the annals of our revolution, and 
was used by Burgoyne's army as a depot for 
military stores in 1777, as well as the scene 



HISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE. 55 

of a close conflict between the garrison who 
defended it, and the Americans under Col. 
Brown. This officer under authority of 
General Lincoln, who at this time com- 
manded a body of New England militia, 
and between the actions of the 19th of Sep- 
tember and 7th of October at Bemis's 
Heights, got in the rear ofBurgoyne's army 
near Lake Champlain, determined to re- 
capture Ticonderoga, and the posts in the 
vicinity. He accordingly despatched Col. 
Brown with full discretionary power to cut 
off the retreat of the British, and if possible 
to reduce their supplies. The nature of the 
service was exactly suited to Brown's ener- 
getic and decisive character, and on the 
25th of September 1777, by an unexpected 
surprise he captured all the enemy's out- 
posts, betv/een the landing place at the 
north end of Lake George and the fortress 
at Ticonderoga ; 200 batteaux, an armed 
sloop, and 293 prisoners, were the trophies 
of his daring and intrepidity. He also 
captured Mount Defiance, Mount Hope, the 
French lines, besides releasing 100 Ameri- 



©— 



© ■ — 3 

5G HISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE. 

cans. Elated with his success, he determin- 
ed, with the vessels that he had captured, to 
sweep Lake George. The little garrison 
stationed at the island gallantly defended 
themselves, somewhat to the loss of the 
brave republicans. Unsuccessful in this at- 
tempt, they sailed for the shore on the south 
side of Dunham's Bay, where they burned 
all the vessels they had captured and im- 
mediately returned to Lincoln's camp. A 
mile further to the north, on the west side 
is Diamond Point. There is an anecdote 
connected with this Point which I will re- 
late : Some years ago. Anthony Paul, an 
old Indian, had a camp near this Point, 
and one day late in the fall, while in the 
act of supplying his camp with water, he dis- 
covered something in the water, evidently 
making towards the shore. Observing 
closely his approach, he determined an at- 
tack, but having no weapon about him, he 
called for assistance and his appeal was 
answered by his wife who brought him a 
large spear. He waited patiently for the 
animal's approach dreading a severe en- 
■ 3 



HISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE. i 

counter : but the animal, benumbed with the 
cold, made but a feeble resistance. It 
proved to be a panther measuring ten feet 
in length. One mile further to the north, 
in the centre of the lake, are the Two Sisters. 
To the east of these islands is Long Island, 
one mile in length, and containing 100 
acres of good farm land. The Harrow fer- 
tile strip of land, which projects far out into 
the lake from the eastern shore, and near 
the south end of Long Island, is Long Point. 
The estuary between the north side of the 
point and the mountains on the ea^st, is Har- 
ris's Bay, and is designated as the spot 
where Abercrombie moored his vessels pre- 
vious to his attack upon Fort William 
Henry on St. Patrick's eve. East of Harris's 
Bay is Slim Point. Low's Pavilion Hotel 
is situated on the east shore, about the 
middle of Wormer's Bay. It is a good 
house, conducted by a gentlemanly land- 
lord. The fishing in this neighborhood is 
considered excellent. We now make a 
stretch of some four miles in a northwesterly 
direction, before we can note any more isl- 



58 HISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE. 

ands, content however with viewing the 
extent of scenery here displayed. Near the 
western shore we pass three small islands, 
bearing the name of the ThreeBrothers. The 
little island which we pass so closely to the 
right, and upon which a cross is erected is 
Sloop Island, deriving its name from its re- 
semblance to a sloop. The cross was erect- 
ed by Madame Parodi in the summer of 
1851, and attracts the attention of the tra- 
veller. Dome Island directly in the centre 
of the lake, and distant ten miles from its 
head is the next considerable island on the 
lake. It received its name from its close 
resemblance to the upper portion of a dome, 
and at the distance of a few miles appears 
as perfect as though formed^ by art. Here 
it was that Putnam left his men, while he 
informed General Webb of the presence of 
the Indians and French upon the two is- 
lands, near the entrance of north west Bay. 
Pleasantly situated on the west shore in the 
town of Bolton, is the Mohican House, kept 
by G. B. Gale. The fishing in this neigh- 
borhood, is esteemed as very excellent. A 

^ Q 



e> 

HISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE. 59 

sliort distance north of Bolton is Green Isl- 
and, containini^ seventy-four acres of good 
tillable land. Hog Island, so named from its 
resemblance to a hog's back, is a few rods 
distant. On the east side is Shelving Rock, 
two miles north of Bolton, a towering cliff, so 
named from its projecting boldly over the 
mouth of a brook. This place is famous 
above all others on the lake for its rattle- 
snakes. In the centre of the lake, nearly 
opposite Shelving Rock, is Tongue Moun- 
tain, a bold rocky promontory, receiving its 
name, and justly so, from its close resem- 
blance to a beefs tongue. To the west of 
this notable mountain, is Northwest Bay, six 
miles in length. Directly on our east, is a 
little cluster of islands, familiary known as 
the Hen and Chickens. Near the end of 
Tongue Mountain is Flea Island, so named 
from the immense number of fleas with 
which it is infested. Directly to the north 
of these last named islands is Fourteen Mile 
Island. Now we enter the narrows and the 
scene presented is one of quiet, though 
continued beauty. Here the islands are so 



© e 

GO HISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE. 

thickly interspersed, varying materially in 
size, that a very small space is allowed for 
the steamboat to pass through. On the west 
side, two miles further to the north, is 
French Point, and near by are the Two 
Dollar Islands ; one mile to the north of 
these islands, and in the centre of the lake, 
are the Hatchet Islands. Some years ago a 
hatchet was found upon one of these islands, 
supposed to belong to one of the chiefs of the 
Mohicans, and from this circumstance thej 
derived their name. Two miles to the north 
of these islands is Half-Way Island ; to the 
east of which, towers majestically, Black 
Mountain, rising at an elevation of 2200 
feet ; its sides are heavily wooded, and it 
will ever preserve the bold originality of 
nature. The view from the summit of this 
mountain is one which amply repays the 
labors of the traveller, showing an immense 
extent of country for miles in every direction. 
At the base of Black Mountain are a 
number of islands called the Floating 
Battery Islands, so named from their rep- 
resenting ships in battle array. The 



HISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE. 61 

next island, in the centre of the lake, is 
Harbor Island, receiving its name from the 
excellent harborage to be obtained on all 
sides for vessels of considerable tonnage. 
On the east shore, the north part of Black 
Mountain, is Elephant Ridge, first discov- 
ered in 1852, by Mr. E. S. Harris, Pilot, 
and deriving its name from its close re- 
semblance to an elephant's back. It must 
be borne in mind, that objects are differ- 
ently represented when viewed from dif- 
ferent points, in a measure owing their 
resemblance from the position in which 
they are viewed ; in this instance, the best 
view of Elephant Ridge is when opposite 
Harbor Island. North of this last named 
island and near it, is Vicar's Island, which 
we pass directly to the left of ; it derived 
its name from the following incident : 
" Some years ago there was a man inhabiting 
this island, who, with a boy, his only son, 
were its sole occupants. Some fishermen, 
their nearest residents, happening to land 
upon the island, discovered its occupant 
dead and the boy actually wild with grief and 



1 C2 HISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE. 

hunger, watching the dead corpse of his 
father. The boy upon noticing the approach 
of the men, fled precipitately, but their assur- 
ances composed him. They made a suitable 
disposition of the body, and from their own 
examination and the incoherent language 
of the boy, they concluded that he had died 
in a fit. The child was cared for by the 
fishermen, and the island named after its 
unfortunate resident." East of this island 
is Bosom Boy, back of which is Sugar Loaf 
Mountain. On the west shore is Short Run 
Mountain ; it derived its name from the 
great number of deer to be found upon it, 
and the precipitate haste with which they 
took to the water when pursued by the 
dogs ; it received its name from Moses 
Harris, Esq., who, in his youthful days, 
when on his hunting excursions, frequently 
captured two deers before breakfast. Plac- 
ing his dog under Buck Mountain and on 
Eattlesnake Point, the dog so thoroughly 
understanding his business, would perform 
all the necessary offices unaided and alone. 
Secreting himself among the branches of a 



& 



e- 



IIISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE 



G3 



tree, ho awaited patiently tlie approach of 
the deer into the water, and cautiously 
lowering himself from his hiding* place, he 
jumped into his frail boat and rowed after 
the deer in hot pursuit. After a warm 
chase, in which much agility is required, 
the tired deer is easily secured. Kind 
reader, did you ever indulge in this glori- 
ous sport? if not, the pleasure of partaking 
of a iine bit of venison with all the etceteras, 
is but a tithe to the pleasures of the chase. 
This is the usual way of taking the deer in 
this section of country, with the exception 
that there are men who make it a business 
to set on their dogs, thereby driving them 
into the water. The fawns, taken at the 
proper season, can be easily tamed and be- 
come wonderfully tractable and playful. 
Buck Mountain, on the west side, rising at 
an elevation of about 800 feet, derived its 
name from a line large buck being driven 
oft' the ledge by a pack of dogs, who by 
the fall was shockingly mutilated. 

The next important point upon the lake, 
is Sabbath Day Point, which we pass closely 



e- 



64 HISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE. 

on our left. It is a narrow fertile strip of 
land, possessing considerable historical in- 
terest. Here, in 1756, a small provincial 
force pursued by a party of French and In- 
dians, and unable to escape, made a des- 
perate resistance and defeated their assail- 
ants ; it received its name from General 
Abercrombie, who, with his fine army, as 
already noticed, in batteaux and whale boats 
debarked for a few hours rest and refresh- 
ment. Lord Howe collected the bravest 
of his officers around him, who with Capt. 
Stark, (the revolutionary general,) whom 
he invited to sup with him, discussed with 
the greatest warmth and anxious solicitude, 
the fortress at Ticonderoga which they 
were about to assail. Deeply solicitous for 
the welfare of his army, he acted as one 
who felt a sad presentiment possessing his 
mind and over which he seemed to have no 
control. How truly it vras verified we 
have before noticed. It was early on Sun- 
day morning when they were again in mo- 
tion, and from this circumstance it received 
its name. The armament consisting of 1600 



■Q 



HISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE. 65 

i 

j men, is described as presenting a most im- 
j posing appearance. Major Rogers " com- 
i pares it to a splendid military show." 
I Howe, the gallant English officer, led the 
j van of the flotilla. The regular troops oc- 
I cupied the centre and the provincials the 
j wing. The sky without the shadow of a 
cloud, was radiant with the gems of night, 
and the silver lake was quiet and motion- 
less, not a breeze ruffling its deep and 
crystal waters ; their oars were muffled, 
and so silently did they move on in the 
darkness, that their progress was not even 
observed by the enemy's scouts, nor had 
they the least intimation of their ap- 
proach at the proposed landing until sud- 
denly rounding a point, their whole num- 
bers were diplayed to their astonished 
view. At this Point, in 1776, a severe 
battle occurred between a party of Ameri- 
can militia of Saratoga county, and a body of 
Tories and Indians. Both were scouting 
parties and their unexpected meeting gave 
rise to a severe encounter. The Ameri- 
cans were signally victorious, having killed 



66 HISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE. 

and wounded about forty of the enemy. 
Tlie scenery in the vicinity of the Point, is 
of the most bewitching character, even to 
a prodigality of the picturesque and beauti- 
ful, representing nature in her most gorge- 
ous attire, and in correct harmony with the 
peaceful heroism of the times. Opposite to 
this Point is Bluff Point ; on the east 
shore, about a mile further to the north, is 
Odell Island. An accident occurred some 
years ago near this island which I will re- 
late : " A gentleman was invited by two 
or three others to join in a sailing ex- 
cursion, and they having before partaken 
somewhat too freely, became so venture- 
some and reckless, despite the steadily in- 
creasing gale, that the fear incited by their 
apparent carelessness, induced him to re- 
quest them to put him ashore. The boat 
was ballasted with stone, consequently his 
alarm, for in case of a capsize she must ine- 
vitably go to the bottom. This proposition 
instead of producing the desired effect, 
caused them to proceed more carelessly in 
managing the boat. Ridiculing his idea 
— O 



@ 

HISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE. G7 

and consider ing- liim as timid, tliey, to en- 
sure his confidence and dissipate all un- 
necessary fears, secured themselves by por- 
tions of the rigging ; the man at the helm 
tied the main sheet rope fast to his body, 
while the others were similarly entangled. 
Entertaining no hope of their compliance 
to liis wishes, he Avatched a favorable oppor- 
tunity, and as they neared Slim Point, which 
is two and a half miles north of Sabbath Day 
Point, and the water being shoal, he jumped 
overboard and waded to the shore. They 
laughing at his timidity and wishing him a 
pleasant journey, tacked about and were 
soon far from the land. The rescued one, 
for so he providentially believed himself, 
watched their progress with fearful mis- 
givings ; his doubts were but momentary ; 
for a flaw of wind struck the frail bark 
suddenly and she itnmediately capsized, and 
all on board were entombed in a watery 
grave. The gentleman I allude to is still 
living, and is now one of the first men of 
Saratoga county." On the west shore, 

two and a half miles north, is an island 

^ 



68 HISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE. 

known as the Scotch Bonnet, receiving 
its name from its close resemblance to 
a Scotch bonnet. Further to the north, 
two miles, is the little village of Hague. This 
is the widest part of the lake. Here may be 
found a good hotel conducted by Garfield, 
and is justly noted as the best place on the 
entire lake for fishing and hunting, and as 
being' a great resort for parties of pleasure. 
The first islands we pass after leaving Gar- 
field's, and almost directly to the east, are 
Cook's Islands. Friend's Point is the next 
locality of any interest ; it received its 
name from the following incident : " Dur- 
ing the war, two scouting parties accidently 
meeting, a skirmish seemed to be inevitable, 
each taking the other for a deadly enemy ; 
they proved to be of the same party, but 
the darkness of the night and their acci- 
dental meeting, confounded them, and only 
when about to engage did they discover 
their mistake ;" from this circumstance this 
point has been most appropriately named. 
On the east shore is Anthony's Nose, a 
bold, prominent hill. A fine echo is here 



<0- 



IIISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE. 69 



produced by the sound of the human voice. 
Four miles northward of Garfield's, and on 
the western shore is Rogers' Rock ; or fami- 
liarly known as Rogers' Slide. The " slide" 
itself is about two hundred feet, with a de- 
scent on an angle of about twenty-five de- 
grees from meridian. The whole height of 
the rock is probably near four hundred feet. 
It presents a singular appearance ; appear- 
ing from its smoothness, as though hewn by 
art The scene here presented is one of 
sublime beauty, masses of rocks confusedly 
piled, tower on either side ; while our little 
steamer majestically ploughs the pure 
waters, which lave their rocky base. It re- 
ceived its name from Major Rogers, com- 
mander of a corps of Rangers, who in the 
winter of 1758 was surprised while on a re- 
connoitering expedition by a party of In- 
dians, and put to flight. Shod with snow 
shoes he eluded pursuit, until coming to the 
summit of the mountain he tasked his in- 
genuity, which alone saved his life. De- 
scending to the smooth rock he cast his 
haversack of provisions down upon the ice, 



a 



70 IIISTOEY OF LAKE GEORGE. 

slipped off his snow-slioes, and without mov- 
ing them, turned himself about and put them 
on his feet again. He tlien retreated along 
the southern brow of the rock a few rods, 
and down a ravine he made his way safely 
to the lake below, and fled on the ice to 
Fort George. His device was signally 
successful. The Indians in the meanwhile 
approaching the spot, noticed the two tracks 
evidently made by two persons, both appa- 
rently approaching the precipice, and their 
wise conclusions suggested to them the idea, 
that two persons had cast themselves down 
the steep rock, sooner than fall into their 
hands. On looking about, to their surprise 
they discovered the bold major on the ice, 
making his way with all possible speed, 
while they, believing that he had slid down 
the steep rock, with that characteristic re- 
verence, considered him as under the guid- 
ance and protection of the Great Spirit, and 
relinquished all further pursuit. Within a 
mile of the landing is Prisoner's Island ; 
it is thickly covered with shrubbery, and 
was used by the French in the seven year's 



HISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE. 71 

war for tlieir English captives. One side 
is fordable, and the first party confined 
there, through the carelessness of their vic- 
tors, made good their escape by wading to 
the shore. A few rods to the west of this 
island is Howe's Landing. Leaving Sab- 
bath Day Point early in tlie morning, Aber- 
crombie's army reached this place by noon, 
and pushed their way forward towards Ti- 
conderoga. The ride of four miles to the fort 
is a pleasant one, though the road is hilly, 
but the scenery is ever new and changing. 
We cross the outlet of the lake twice, first 
at the upper Falls, and next at the lower 
Falls half way between the two lakes of 
Champlain and George. Here the thriving 
village of Ticonderoga is situated. Arri- 
ving at the Fort about noon, we can dine at 
the'Tavilion, "await the arrival of the Cham- 
plain steamers, or if returning through Lake 
George, have ample time to inspect the 
ruins of time honored old *' Ty," the most 
memorable fortress connected with our Re- 
volution. 



-o 




CHAPTER EIGHTH. 



" This is the hallowed spot where first unfurling, 

Fair Freedom spread her blazing scroll of light, 

Here, from oppression's throne the tyrant hurling , 

She stood sui>reme in majesty and might." 

Dewey. 

A Description of the Fortress of Ticoxderoga — 
Its history and present appearance — Abercrom- 
bie's Attack on Ticonderoga, July 8, 1758 — His 
Defeat — Anecdote- of young Lord Howe. 



s we gaze upon the rums of 
J'yenei'able old " Ty,'' what 
emotions are excited, and 
what a degree of patriotism 
thrills through the breast of 
every true American ! Here still re- 
main a few crumbling remains of per- 
ishable greatness ; but amid such 
scenes and associations, what a degree 
of generous feeling awakens the heart 
to patriotic impulses, even warming the soul 
of the veriest churl. Sacred is the ground 
O 




HISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE 73 

on which we tread ; hallowed are the scenes 
through which we linger. With age, as- 
sociations are matured, and what becomes 
gray with time, we reverence as a part of 
true religion. There is a voice " which 
speaks with most miraculous organ" in 
every relic of the past ; there is an indescri- 
bable feeling which overflows the channels 
of expression ; there is almost an idolatry 
connected with events which have been 
honorably memorialized ; and how signally 
is it instanced in the appearance of this me- 
morable fortress. Imagination and art 
may sketch its ruined walls, but they wear 
a more majestic and imposing appearance, 
when viewed by a personal inspection. Ti- 
conderoga was erected by the French in 
1756, and was called by them Carillon, sig- 
nifying chime, jingling noise. It is distant 
from Albany ninety-six miles, and has been 
a fortress of great celebrity in both colonial 
and revolutionary history. The Indians 
applied the name of Cheonderoga, an Iro- 
quois word, signifying sounding waters, on 
account of the rushing waters of the outlet 



74 HISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE. 

of Lake George at tlie Falls. It was 
known only by its Indian name till 1763. at 
the close of tlie French and Indian war. The 
ruins are situated on a peninsula, compris- 
ing about 500 acres, and at an elevation of 
about 100 feet above Lake Champlain. It 
was a very safe and secure fortress, sur- 
rounded on three sides by water, and on the 
fourth by a swamp, and the only approach- 
able point defended by a breast-work. It 
was commanded by Mount Defiance on the 
south side of the creek or outlet, which 
rises at an elevation of 750 feet above the 
lake. General Burgoyne's troops to the 
utter astonishment of the little garrison 
stationed at the fort, appeared on the sum- 
mit of this mountain July 4th, 1777, and so 
completely were they in his power, that 
General St. Clair fully justified an immedi- 
ate retreat, which he effected under cover 
of the night. Of this event I shall speak 
more particularly hereafter. Let us in 
due form, chronicle the various events his- 
torically connected with this renowned for- 
tress. Prior to Montcalm's attack upon 

Q — — Q 



o 



HISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE. i .) 

Fort William Ilcniy in August, 1757, tins 
fort was the rendezvous of the French 
troops, and continued as such until Quebec 
was threatened, in 1759, by an expedition 
under Wolfe, up the St. Lawrence. The 
following account of the conflict, is in part 
from the third volume of Macauley's His- 
tory of New York. Abercrombie in person, 
conducted the expedition against Ticonde- 
roga and Crown Point, July 3, 1758. He 
embarked all his forces, amounting to near 
700 regulars and 10,000 provincials, on 
Lake George, on board of 900 batteaux, 
and 135 whale boats, with all necessary 
provisions, artillery and ammunition. The 
splendor of the military parade was emi- 
nently imposing. A late writer. Dr. 
Dwight, thus describes it :— " The morning 
was remarkably bright and beautiful : and 
the fleet moved with exact regularity to the 
sound of martial music. The ensigns waved 
and glittered in the sunbeams, and the an- 
ticipation of future triumph shone in every 
eye. Above, beneath, around, the scenery 
was that of enchantment. Rarely has the 



© 

76 HISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE. 

sun, since that luminary was first lighted 
up in tlie heavens, dawned on such a com- 
plication of beauty and magnificence." 
Having reached the landing place early 
the next mornins^, which was in a cove on 
the west side of the lake near its issue, he 
immediately debarked his forces, and having 
formed them into three columns, he marched 
to the enemy's advanced post, composed of 
one batallion in a logged camp and com- 
pletely routed them. He urged his march 
towards Ticonderoo'a with the serious in- 
tention of investino; it, but his route lying 
through a thick wood, which aff'orded no 
regular progression, the ranks were broken 
by their falling in one on another. This 
was in a measure owing to the ignorance of 
his guides and the bewilderment of his 
troops, who unexpectedly fell in with a 
French detachment that had lost its way. 
Lord Howe being advanced at the head of 
the right centre column, led on the troops 
in this skirmish, and though the enemy 
were completely routed, and l-iS taken pri- 
soners, the victory Avas purchased at a dear 
Q 



HISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE i i 

rate, for Lord Howe, together with one 
other officer, besides privates were slain.* 
This was a sad discouragement to Aber- 
crombie. Perceiving the fatigue of his 
troops, he judged it expedient to fall back 
to the landing place. A detachment under 
Col. Broadstreet, was ordered to take pos- 
session of a saw-mill in the vicinity of Ti- 
conderoga which the enemy had abandoned. 
Abercrombie again advanced towards Ti- 
conderoga, where he was informed from the 
prisoners the enemy had assembled eight 
battalions, in the aggregate to 600 men. 
Montcalm commanded a force of 4000 men 
when Abercrombie approached, but was in 

* "This young officer was the idol of tlie army. From his first 
arrival in America, he had accommodated himself and his regiment 
to the peculiar nature of the service. lie cut his hair 8hort and 
induced the regiment to follow the example. lie fashioned their 
clothing for the activity of service and divested himself and them 
of every article of superfluous baggage. When near Ticonderoga 
Major, afterward General Putnam, with about 100 men advanced 
in front of the army as a kind of scouting party. Putnam en- 
deavored to prevent Lord Howe from accompanying him. saying^ 
' my Lord, if I am killed the loss of my life will be of little conse- 
quence, but the preservation of yours is of infinite importance to 
this army.' The only answer was, ' Putnam, your life is as dear to 
you as mine is to me — I am determined to go I' They soon met 
the left flank of the enemy's advance, by whose first fire his lord- 
ship fell.-' — Humphrey's Life of Putnam. 



78 HISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE. 

daily expectation of an increase to Ms 
numbers by a re-inforcement of 3000 troops 
under M. DeLevi. The English commander 
deemed it a favorable time to strike a de- 
cisive blow. Bivouacino' for the nio-ht, he 
sent his engineer, early in the morning, to 
examine the condition of the enemy's en- 
trenchments. Satisfied with the prospect 
of success, he deemed a right disposition of 
his troops as justly necessary. Stationing 
a proper guard at the saw-mill and the 
landing place, he set out with his troops, 
who marched with great alacrity towards 
the entrenchments. The French breast- 
works, eight feet high, had a forbidding ap- 
pearance to the English soldiers, while the 
ground before it was covered with an abatis 
or felled trees, with their bows pointing 
outward, which, projecting in such a man- 
ner, rendered the entrenchments almost in- 
accessible. The troops despite all these 
discouragements, marched up to the breast- 
works with the most commendable bravery 
and sustained a most terrible fire. Some 
even mounted the parapet, but they were 



HISTOKY OF LAKE GEORGE. 79 

almost immediately slain. The Freiicli 
were so securely defended, that no impres- 
sion could be brought to bear upon them. 
The battle lasted for several hours, and was 
pursued with an obstinacy and pressed 
with a vigor which proved the determination 
of the assailants. They were, however, 
unsuccessful, and having began to fall into 
great confusion after several attacks, and 
the carnage becoming fearfully great, Aber- 
crombie sounded a retreat as the only expe- 
dient to save his army from a total defeat. 
The English loss was nearly 2000 men and 
2500 stand of arms. The regiment of Lord 
John Murray sustained the severest loss ; 
one half of the privates and twenty-five 
officers were slain on the spot, or badly 
wounded. Never did troops show bolder 
discipline, or maintain in the unequal strife 
more determined obstinance ; but the for- 
tunes of war were against them, and their 
thin and saddened ranks reluctantly with- 
drew from the bloody field. Abercrombie's 
failure caused him to change his plans. He 
returned to Albany, not however, until he 
. ^___^ 



r- 



80 



HISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE. 



had dispatched Gen. Stanwix to build a fort 
near the head quarters of the Mohawk, and 
ordered Col. Bradstreet with 3000 troops 
to attack Fort Frontenac. 




y- 




CHAPTER NINTH. 



"There is a spirit working in the world, 
Like to a silent subterranean fire ; 
Yet. ever and anon, some monarch hurl'd ♦ 

Aghast and pale attests its fearful ire. 
The dungeoned nations now once more respire 
The keen and stirring air of libei'ty. 
The struggling giant wakes and feels he's fr^e ; 
By Delphi's fountain cave, that ancient choir 
Resume their song ; the Greek astonished hears, 
And the old altar of his worship rears. 
Sound on. fair sisters I sound your boldest lyres — 
Peal your old harmonies as from the spheres. 
Unto strange gods too long we've bent the knee. 
The trembling mind, too long and patiently." 

George Hill. 

The causes which induced the commencement of 
Hostilities — The zeal of the Americans — An 
Explanation — Account of Col Ethan Allen's 
Capture of Ticonderoga. 



^EFORE attempting a description 

] of the ruins of Ticonderoga, we 

will examine the causes which 

I ;^ induced the infant colonies to 



i take up arms against their mother 
country. Laboring so long under the fet- 
ters of a cruel tyranny, they were obliged, 




-r> 



82 HISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE. 



by virtue of a stern necessity, to assume a 
degree of independence which they well 
knew would seriousl}^ conflict with the inter- 
ests of their more powerful rival. The ap- 
parent contempt with which all their peti- 
tions were rejected, the utter disregard with 
which their remonstrances were treated, 
begat within the patient, though fearless 
colonists, such a degree of virtuous indig- 
nation as to kindle the flame which lay idly 
smoulderino: at the hearthstone of everv 
patriot's heart, and which burned with such 
an undimmed lustre for after years. The 
harsh measures adopted in 1775, to force 
the colonies into submission— the domineer- 
ing policy of the British government to 
thwart and disparage the growing energies 
of republican minds, convinced the Ameri- 
cans that an appeal to arms was inevitable. 
Their love for the mother country was still 
strong within them, thrugh the odious 
stamp act in 1765, had greatly alienated 
their affections, and every new restraint 
upon their civil liberties was deeply provo- 
cative of some serious result. They had 
y — — (jj 



^ . a 

HISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE. 83 

indeed borne the indignities of the British 
ministry with a commendable spirit, and 
until their patience was completely exhausted. 
Their greatest apprehension was manifested 
as to the feeling entertained by the province 
of Quebec or Canada, to whom they had 
sent in October, 1774, an address, in Avhich 
tliey recounted the grievances of the Ameri- 
can colonies, and urging them to affiliate in 
a common resistance. Its legislative as- 
sembly forwarding no reply, congress justly 
construed their silence into a negative. 
The strong fortresses of Ticonderoga and 
Crown Point, the great connecting links 
between New-York and Canada, early 
awakened the attention of the vigilant 
patriots who perceived the necessity of se- 
curing these important posts the moment 
hostilities should commence. With this in- 
tent a secret agent was sent into Canada, 
by authority of Samuel Adams and Joseph 
Warren, of the Correspondence Committee 
of Boston, to ascertain the opinions enter- 
tained, and to try the temper of the people 
in reference to the gigantic and important 



a 

84 HISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE. 

events of tlie day. His mission was not 
wholly successful, for the people were at 
best but lukewarm, and as they, the colonies, 
could not rely on their assistance, he pro- 
posed the immediate subjugation of Fort 
Ticonderoga, which was effected by a few 
determined men, in the following manner. 
Before attempting a description of the 
events which followed, allow me, indulo-ent 
reader, to offer an explanation, which, if 
not entirely excusable, may, from its frank- 
ness, in a measure mitigate the severity of 
censure. The design of this little work, as 
before expressed, was exclusively a history 
of Lake George, to serve in the full capaci- 
ty of the Tourist's Guide, but the important 
post of Ticonderoga, so historically con- 
nected with Lake George, has induced me 
to give a description of this memorable 
fortress. But in so doing, I claim one privi- 
lege, that of extracting from reliable 
sources, the battles and sieges in which it 
has borne a part. 

Ramsay, in his history of the American 
Revolution, thus relates the seizure of the 



HISTORY OP LAKE GEORGE. 85 

fortress of Ticonderoga by Colonel Ethan 
Allen, on the 10th of May, 1775 : 

" It early occurred to many, that if the 
sword decided the controversy between 
Great Britain and her colonies, the posses- 
sion of Ticonderoga would be essential to 
the security of the latter ; situated on a pro- 
montory, formed at the junction of the waters 
of Lake George and Lake Champlain, 
it was the key of all communication between 
New- York and Canada. Messrs. Dean, 
Wooster, Parsons, Stevens and others of 
Connecticut, planned a scheme for obtaining 
possession of this valuable post. Having 
procured a loan of §1,800 of public money, 
and provided a sufficient quantity of powder 
and ball, they set off for Bennington to obtain 
the co-operation of Col. Allen, of that place. 
Two hundred and seventy men, mostly of that 
brave and hardy people who are called green 
mountain boys, were speedily collected 
at Castleton, which was fixed on as the 
place of rendezvous. At this place, Colonel 
Arnold, who, though attended only with a 
servant, was prosecuting the same object. 



Q 

86 HISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE. 

unexpectedly joined tliem. He had been 
early chosen captain of a volunteer com- 
pany by the inhabitants of New Haven, 
among whom he resided. As soon as he 
received news of the Lexington battle, he 
marched off with his company for the vici- 
nity of Boston, and arrived there, though 
150 miles distant, in a few days. Immedi- 
atelv after his arrival, he Avaitod on the 
Massachusetts Committee of Safety, and in- 
formed them, that there were at Ticondero- 
ga many pieces of cannon and a great quan- 
tity of valuable stores, and that the fort was 
in a ruinous condition, and garrisoned only 
by about forty men. They appointed him a 
colonel, and commissioned him to raise 400 
men, and to takeTiconderoga. The leaders 
of the party which had previously rendez- 
voused at Castleton, admitted Colonel Ar- 
nold to join them, and it was agreed that 
Colonel Allen should be the commander-in- 
chief of the expedition, and that Colonel 
Arnold should be his assistant. They pro- 
I ceeded without delay, and arrived in the 
j night at Lake Champlain, opposite to Ti- 

Q- ^ ^ 



;___ . © 

HISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE 87 

concleroga. Allen and Arnold crossed over 
with eighty-three men, and landed near the 
garrison. Thej contended who should go 
in fii-st, but it was at last agreed that they 
should both go in together. They advanced 
abreast, and entered the fort at the dawn- 
ing of day. A sentry snapped his piece at 
one of them, and then retreated through 
the covered way to the parade. The Ame- 
ricans followed, and immediately drew up. 
The commander, surprised in his bed, was 
called upon to surrender the fort. He ask- 
ed by what authority. Colonel Allen re- 
plied, " I demand it in the name of the great 
Jehovah and of the Continental Congress.'' 
No resistance was made, and the fort, with 
its valuable stores and forty-eight prisoners, 
fell into the hands of the Americans.* The 
boats had been sent back for the remainder 
of the men, but the business was done be- 



* The spoils were 120 pieces of iron cannon, one howitzer, two 
ten inch mortars, fifty swivels, one cohorn. three cart load of flints, 
thirty new carriag.-s. ten tons of musket balls, quite a quantity of 
shells, much material for boat building, one hundred stand of 
small arms, two brass cannon, ten casks poor powder, thirty bar- 
rels of flour, some beans and peas, and eighteen barrels of pork. 
Q ! 



88 HISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE. 

fore they got over. Colonel Setli Warner 
was sent off with a party to take possession 
of Crown Point, where a sergeant and 
twelve men performed garrison duty. This 
was speedily effected. The next object 
calling for the attention of the Americans, 
was to obtain the command of Lake Cham- 
plain, but to accomplish this, it was neces- 
sary for them to get possession of a sloop 
of war, lying at St. John's, at the northern 
extremity of the lake. With the yiew of 
capturing this sloop, it was agreed to man 
and arm a schooner lying at South Bay, and 
that Arnold should command her, and that 
Allen should command some batteaux on 
the same expedition. A favorable wind car- 
ried the schooner ahead of the batteaux, and 
Colonel Arnold got immediate possession 
of the sloop by surprise. The wind again 
favoring him, he returned witli his prize to 
Ticonderoga, and rejoined Colonel xUlen. 
The latter soon went home, and the former 
with a number of men agreed to remain 
there in. garrison. In this rapid manner 
the possession of Ticonderoga and the com- 



© 



HISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE. 



89 



mand of Lake Champlain were obtained 
without any loss, by a few determined 



men. 





e 



CHAPTER TENTH. 



A Description of the Ruins as now Represented — 
Interesting Localities described — ^Vandalism — 
Its Effects — Lossing's Pictorial Field Book of 
the Revolution. 



§^^mmmET us, before we proceed fur- 
fq j tlier, inspect the ruins of Ti- 

ff .1 j conderoga, and gather such 

|^J^=__._^J^iij^fQPjjiation as time allows 
prior to the departure of the Champlain 
steamers. The outlines of the fort, togeth- 
er with its venerable walls, which rise in 
some places to the height of twenty feet, 
preserve much of their original appear- 
ance. From the remains of the glacis, near 
the southern range of barracks, looking to 
the northward, I trust I may convey to the 
reader, or point out more accurately to the 

— Q 



UISTOKY OF LAKE GEORGE. 91 

close observer, a correct idea of exact lo- 
calities. So familiar is this fortress to every 
American, associated as it so strongly is 
vritli our Independence, that the full partic- 
ulars of its memorable history must prove 
acceptable to every reader. The soldiers' 
and officers' quarters were securely built of 
limestone, two stories high, and formed a 
quadrangle ; the space enclosed was the 
parade. The building on the right, with a 
chimney on the east end, (the best preserved 
building to be seen,) is the one in which the 
commandant of the garrison was asleep 
when Allen and young Beekman, who acted 
as guide, thundered forth his request for the 
immediate surrender of the fort " in the 
name of the Great Jehovah and of the 
Continental Congress." On the extreme 
left is seen Mount Defiance,* and on the 
right. Mount Hope.f A part of the ram- 

* Formerly known as Sugar Loaf Hill, but changed to its pre- 
sent name by the British, on the day -when they erected their bat- 
tery upon it. for from that height they defied the Americans to re- 
sist or dislodge them. 

t This title was given to it by General Eraser in allusion to the 
hope they eatertained of d'slodingthe Americans. — Lossing's Field 
Book of the Revolution. 



92 HISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE. 

parts may be seen in the direction of Mount 
Hope, and the remains of the " French 
lines" are marked by the woods beyond it ; 
nothing however remaining, except mounds 
and ditches. The most interesting spot 
connected with this venerable fortress, and 
which still preserves most remarkably its 
original appearance, is the bakery near the 
southeastern angle of the range of bar- 
racks. It is an under-ground room, about 
ten or twelve feet wide, and near thirty 
feet long. It was lighted by one window, 
and contained a fire-place and chimney, 
w^hich are now in ruins. The ovens on 
cither side of the fire-place are well pre- 
served, and I have found on inspection, to 
be in good condition and capable of answer- 
ing their original purpose ; they are about 
ten feet deep. The entrance to this room, 
which was perfectly bomb proof, is so 
choked up with rubbish that a descent into 
it is somewhat difficult. 

Here also the crafty spirit of avarice 
wickedly desecrates the sacred monuments 
of the past, and every year witnesseth a 



HISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE. 93 

gradual decay which this potent destroyer 
so impiously provokes. To most historical 
travellers this is the " mecca" of their de- 
votions, and to render their oblations upon 
the altar of liberty more sincere, they re- 
move, piece-meal, the structure upon which 
their reverence hinges. The curse of Van- 
dalism is the great bane of the human race, 
j and with us, unless Congress acts decidedly 
I in the matter, all our venerable war-posts 
{ must become, in a few years, known only in 
j " song and story." Lossing deserves the 
thanks of the American people for his time- 
ly rescue of many of the scenes and relics 
of the past ; and in his splendid work, " The 
Pictorial Field Book of the Revolution,'' 
he has stored in excellent verse a whole 
magazine of historical researches and 
amusing anecdotes, for which I am deeply 
indebted in the compilation of tl^s little 
work. 




©Sk 



e- 



-n 




CHAPTER ELEVENTH. 



Evacuation of Ticonderoga by Gen. St. CjlaiPw, 
July 6x11, 1T77. 



|f^%^^?^gACAULEY in tliG tliird Tolume 01 



II:; 






.J 



I his History of New-York, gives 
]|a full account of the evacuation 
iiSii&iof Ticonderoga by General St. 
Clair, on July 6, 1T7T, which I take the 
liberty of extracting : 

" From Crown Point the British armj 
advanced on both sides of the lake, the 
naval force keeping its station in the centre ; 
the fri^te and gun boats cast anchor just 
out of cannon shot from the American 
works. On the near approach of the right 
wing, which advanced on the Avest side of 
the lake, on the 2d of July, the Ameri- 
cans abandoned and set fire to their works, 



Q 



HISTORY OF Lx\.KE GEORGE. 95 

block-houses and saw-mills, towards Lake 
George, and without attempting any serious 
opposition, suffered General Phillips to take 
possession of Mount Hope. This post com- 
manded the American lines in a great de- 
gree, and cut off their communication with 
Lake George. The enemy charged the 
Americans, on this occasion, with supineness 
and want of vigor ; but this charge seems 
not wellfounded ; they had not men enough 
to make an}^ effectual opposition to the 
powerful force which threatened to enclose 
them. In the meantime, the British array 
proceeded with such expedition in the con- 
struction of their works, the bringing up of 
their artillery, stores and provisions, and 
the establishment of posts and communica- 
tions, that by the fifth, matters were so far 
advanced as to require but one or two days 
more to completely invest the posts on both 
sides of the lake. Mount Defiance had also 
been examined, and the advantages which 
it presented were so important, that it had 
been determined to take possession and 
erect a battery there. This work, though 



96 HISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE. 

attended with extreme difficulty and labor, 
had been carried on by General Phillips 
with much expedition and success. A road 
had been made over very rough ground to 
the top of the mount, and the enemy were 
at work in constructing a level for a bat- 
tery and transporting their cannon. As 
soon as this battery should be ready to play, 
the American works would have been com- 
l^letely invested on all sides. The situation 
of General St. Clair was now very critical. 
He called a council of war to deliberate on 
measures to be taken. lie informed them 
that their whole effective number was 
not sufficient to man one half of the Avorks ; 
that as the whole must be constantly on 
duty, it would be impossible for them to 
endure the fatigue for any considerable 
length of time ; that General Schuyler, who 
was then at Fort Edward, had not sufficient 
forces to relieve them, and that, as the 
enemy's batteries were nearly ready to open 
upon them and the place would be com- 
pletely invested in twenty-four hours — 
nothing could save the troops but an imme- 



-^ 



HISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE. 97 

diatc evacuation of the posts. It was pro- 
posed that the baggage of the army, with 
such artillery, stores and provisions as the 
necessity of the occasion would admit, 
should be embarked with a strong detach- 
ment on board of two hundred batteaux, 
and despatched under convoy of five armed 
galleys, up the lake to Skeensborough, 
(Whitehall,) and that the main body of the 
army should proceed by land, taking its 
route on the road to Castleton, which was 
about thirty miles southeast of Ticonderoga, 
and join the boats and galleys at Skeens- 
borough. It was thought necessary to keep j 
the matter a secret till the time should 
come when it was to be executed. Hence, 
the necessary preparations could not be 
made, and it was not possible to prevent 
irregularity and disorder in the different 
embarkations and movements of the troops. 
About two o'clock, in the morning of 
July the sixth. General St. Clair left Ti- 
conderoga, and about three, the troops at 
Mount Independence were put in motion. 
The house which had been occupied by 



©- 



98 HISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE. 

General de Fermoy was, contrary to orders, 
set on fire. This afi'orded complete infor- 
mation to the enemy of what was going for- 
ward, and enabled them to see every move- 
ment of the Americans ; at the same time 
it impressed the latter with such an idea of 
discovery and danger as precipitated them 
into great disorder. 

About four o'clock, Col. Francis brought 
off the rear-guard and conducted their re- 
treat in a regular manner ; and soon after, 
some of the resriments, throuirh the exer- 
tions of their ofiicers, recovered from their 
confusion. When the troops arrived at 
Hubbardton, they were halted for nearly 
two hours and the rear-guard was increased 
by many who did not at first belong to it, 
but were picked up on the road, having 
been unable to keep up with their regiments. 
The rear-guard was here put under the com- 
mand of Col. Seth Warner, with orders to 
follow the army as soon as the whole came 
up, and to halt about a mile and a half 
short of the main body. The army then 
proceeded to Castleton, about six miles 



HISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE. 99 

further. Col. Warner witli the rear-guard 
and stragglers remaining at Hubbardton. 

The retreat of the Americans from Ti- 
conderoga and Mount Independence, was 
no sooner perceived by the British, than 
General Frazer began an eager pursuit 
with his brigade. Major General Reidesel 
was ordered to join in the pursuit with the 
greater part of his Germans. General 
Frazer continued the pursuit through the 
day, and having received intelligence that 
the rear of the American army was at no 
great distance, ordered his men to lie that 
night upon their arms. 

On July 7th, at five in the morning, he 
came up with Col. Warner who had about 
1000 men. The British advanced boldly to 
the attack, and the two bodies formed with- 
in sixty yards of each other. The conflict 
was fierce and bloody. Col. Francis fell at 
the head of his regiment fighting with 
great gallantry. Warner was so well sup- 
ported by his officers and men, that the 
assailants broke and gave way. They soon, 
however, recovered from their disorder, 



100 HISTORY or LAKE GEORGE. 

formed again and charged the Americans 
with the bayonet, when the}', in their turn, 
were put into disorder ; these, however, 
rallied and returned to the charge, and the 
issue of the battle became dubious. At 
that moment, Gen. Rcidesel appeared with 
the advance party of his Germans. These 
being led into action, soon decided the for- 
tune of the day, and the Americans had to 
retreat. The loss in this action was very 
considerable on the American side. Col. 
Hale, who had not brous'ht his res-iment, 
which consisted of militia, into action, 
although ordered so to do, in attempting to 
escape by flight, fell in with an inconsidera- 
ble party of the enemy, and surrendered 
himself and a number of his men prisoners. 
In killed, wounded and prisoners, the Amer- 
icans lost in this action three hundred and 
twenty-four men, and the British one hun- 
dred and eighty- three in killed and wounded. 




CHAPTER TWELFTH. 



And so, without more circumstance at all ; 

I hold it fit that vre shake hands and part. 

Shakspeare. 



A woKD AT Parting. 



&- 



^HSi ^^^ NATUEED Reader : — It is with 
|f " Ino small degree of regret that 
|;; ;|:=J necessity obliges me to comply 
l^^lUwith the requirement which the 
quotation at the heading of this chapter so 
appropriately implies. Having made my 
promise good, associating only with you as 
the viewless spirit of a kind informer, I 
must bid you an affectionate farewell ; not 
without offering such words at parting as 
may soften the asperities of criticism, or if 
I dare so far flatter myself, rebuke the zeal 



^ ^J^k 1 

102 HISTORY OF LAKE GEORGE. ^ ' J \:^ \P ■ 

of those most emulous. Faulty as I know 
this little work is, I trust from its genuine- 
ness and regard to truth, that the arrows of 
criticism may fall impotently upon it, and 
that the wide spreading mantle of charity 
may cover all serious defects. 

I know not how others may feel, but it 
appears to me in this leave-taking, that it 
requires no little nerve to disperse all the 
imaginary personages with which I have 
communed. There are airy forms ^ihich 
float on silken pinions when thus engaged, 
who whisper in such captivating tones that 
the communion becomes the more endearing 
from its own ideal existence. 

The best wish that I can offer you at 
parting, is, health, happiness and prosper- 
ity, with the hope of another re-union. 







!l! Pii; 



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